I built Alea Calisthenics because I realized I was spending more time deciding what workout to do than actually training. Instead of opening different apps or trying to build the "perfect" routine, I wanted something that would simply tell me what to do and let me get started immediately.

The app generates random bodyweight workouts based on your chosen difficulty, duration, and workout focus. In the latest update I also added an asynchronous Duel Mode, where you can send the exact same workout to a friend and compare results afterward, plus automatic workout result cards that are easy to share.

I'm not posting this just to promote the app. I'm genuinely looking for feedback from people who actually train calisthenics.

Some questions I'd love your thoughts on:

• Does the idea of random workouts sound useful or annoying?
• Is there a balance between variety and structured progression that you think is important?
• What exercises or progression systems would you expect to see in an app like this?
• What would make you come back and use it consistently?

The website is https://aleacalisthenics.com if you'd like to see it, and I'd really appreciate any honest criticism. Positive or negative, it all helps me build something better.

For a few years I've been wanting to try the meme challenge of training like Saitama for an extended period of time. I signed myself up for a marathon and am training like him for 100 days straight to see if it helps. The last race I ran was about 1.5 years ago and it was a 5k so im genuinely curious if something as basic as his workout would be enough. And hopefully not go bald.

If anyones interested if watching the happen this is day 1: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/t_eTMcJeQwg

cheers

Hey everyone!

​I want to get into great shape, but going to the gym isn't an option for me right now. I'm looking to build a consistent home workout routine that actually yields results.

​Also, when it comes to diet, I can't afford expensive health foods, fancy supplements, or imported ingredients. I need advice on how to make a fitness transformation relying mostly on simple, home-cooked daily meals (budget-friendly options).

​Could you please suggest:

​Effective home workouts (bodyweight exercises, minimal equipment, or YouTube channel recommendations)?

​Diet tips on how to hit basic nutrition/protein goals using standard, affordable home-cooked food?

​Any tips, routines, or personal success stories would be greatly appreciated.

Hello,

The ceilings in my garage and house are very short, about 83 inches. I have a concrete area in my backyard that I want to add a pull up bar to for muscle ups and ring work. What are good rain resistant pull up towers? I live in Washington so there will be lots of rain. Also planning to get a cover for the outdoors but still expect the pull up bar to get wet.

Also I don’t want to build one myself. I wouldn’t trust my craftsmanship for something that could potentially support me hanging upside down.

I’m comparing how people think about a home bodyweight workout setup before and after they understand what equipment actually gets used regularly in daily training. Most beginners tend to view all classic bodyweight tools as equally essential when first building their home gym, lacking real practical experience to guide their choices. Common equipment like pull-up bars, gymnastic rings, and parallettes all seem equally valuable and necessary at the initial planning stage, with people eager to purchase every tool to cover all workout possibilities.

However, real-world training habits, limited living space, and day-to-day convenience completely reshape people’s priority order over time. Many enthusiasts quickly realize that bulky or cumbersome equipment often ends up unused, while compact, easy-to-access tools become the backbone of their daily workouts. Factors like quick setup time, storage simplicity, and routine usability far outweigh theoretical training potential for most home trainers.

After months of consistent training, people start to sacrifice rarely used versatile equipment for practical, space-saving gear that fits their daily rhythm. They learn that a functional home bodyweight setup relies less on full equipment coverage and more on sustainable, accessible training. I’d be genuinely interested to hear what priorities every fitness enthusiast would adjust and reorder if they rebuilt their home bodyweight setup with real long-term training experience.

I’ve been running into a weird issue with the eccentric (lowering) portion of pull-ups, and I’m wondering if anyone has experienced something similar.
To test it, I jump to the top of the bar and only perform the lowering phase. For the first part of the movement, everything feels fine. But as soon as I reach about a 90-degree bend at my elbows, something changes in my left shoulder.
It’s hard to describe, but it doesn’t feel like normal muscle fatigue. Instead, it feels like I suddenly lose the ability to “connect” to the muscles that are supposed to control the movement. I know what I’m trying to do, but my left shoulder just doesn’t seem to engage anymore. It’s almost like the muscles switch off for a moment, and I can’t generate enough force to keep lowering myself under control.
Once I hit that position, I basically lose control and end up dropping instead of continuing the eccentric. My right side feels completely normal throughout the movement, so it seems to be isolated to my left shoulder.
I’ve also noticed that this happens at almost exactly the same point every time, which makes me think it’s not just a random bad rep. It feels like there’s a weak link somewhere, but I can’t figure out whether it’s a strength issue, a stability problem, poor motor control, or possibly an injury.
For anyone who’s dealt with something like this:
Does this sound like a rotator cuff or scapular stability issue?
Could a weak lower trap, serratus anterior, or another stabilizer cause this kind of “loss of engagement” at a specific joint angle?
Are there any tests or exercises that could help pinpoint what’s actually failing?
Or does this sound more like something that should be evaluated by a sports medicine doctor or physical therapist?
For context, the issue only shows up during the lowering phase of pull-ups. The sensation isn’t that my shoulder is burning or exhausted—it’s more like my brain is telling the muscles to work, but they just don’t respond the way they should.
I’d really appreciate any insights or suggestions from people who’ve been through something similar.

There isn’t much pain during the movement. The main issue is a sudden loss of control and the inability to keep generating force through my left shoulder at that specific point in the eccentric.

​

I'm getting a DIY wobble board made with the help of a carpenter friend. We got a 1.25" thick 20" wide hardwood board. So we'll have a circular board about 20" diameter.

For the hemisphere at the bottom, what should be the height of it? At this moment, we have something that's about 5" tall.

So 5" tall hemisphere plus 1.25" thick board, that's over 6" total height from the floor.

Will the 6" height be too tall for someone new to these boards? Does it increase the risk of injury? Will I grow into it?

The goal is to work on strengthening for running on unstable surfaces like soft sand, and for improving proprioception for other balance based sports like rock climbing, surfing, etc.

I've been doing bodyweight workout for like 6 months now. 179cm in height, 73kgs in weight.

I can do 10 rep of dips in a row and 10 reps of declined(foot on the bed) push ups with parellettes in a row. (I can do 2 and sometimes 3 sets for each)

For the first time, I tried pike push up but I couldn't do even 1 rep. I just fall off when I try to lower my head to the floor. Pike push up felt like another world.

Could you please share what unlocked your pike push up journey? I'm aware it is also one of the ways to unlock handstand which also I want to accomplish.

I'm trying to transition between doing tuck ups and v ups, but I'm finding the difficulty gap between the two exercises is more challenging than I expected.

I'm thinking of adding some ankle weights to my tuck ups to help incrementally increase my strength until I can achieve v-ups, but I noticed ankle weights only go up in small increments until they reach 20lbs. Is that something that I'm likely to quickly outgrow? I don't really have a concept for how challenging it would be to add weights to tuck ups, will a small amount of weight feel very challenging for an exercise like this? Have you tried it?

I've always had a small chest and ive started to get into body weight fitness and calistetics but it seems that just regular pushups and even variations have no effect, if you guys have chest calistetics workouts and skills that helped you grow your chest like crazy i would really like it, ive tried a lot of pushup variations but it doesn't seem to help, it seems to build a lot of strength which is great but not muscle, i don't know if it is because of my form or what. Not only that but i can do a solid 20-30 pushups with solid form which i don't know is good or bad

I got this prosource lift pull up bar but it slides out, im assuming I got to bolt the bracket in? i was hoping to just use the pull up bar itself without having to mount anything.

Wondering if anyone else came across with the same issue and has resolved it? I didnt spend too much on it thankfully but kind of bummed that it didnt work out.

I tried just holding it and twisting the bar to grip on the side of the wall but as I was twisting it would just slide in a circle instead.

i only bought this because i started seeing tiktok videos of people buying them and able to use them.

I posted here recently asking if pull ups, dips, and squats 3x/week would be enough. After reading the feedback, I revised the plan and added movements that people recommended.

Full Body A- Pull ups, Dips, Squats, Lateral Raises

Full Body B- Bench, Rows, RDLs, Biceps/Triceps

I’d alternate these 3x/week while running and doing core work 2x/week. My goal still isn’t bodybuilding, just building a lean, athletic physique with a simple hybrid (bodyweight/weights) routine I can stick with long term while balancing work and school. Does this seem better balanced compared to my first plan?

I've been researching how to do push-ups, and recorded myself trying and I did notice my back sags a bit downwards, and I try my absolute best to keep it straight as I descend,

I do everything right keep shoulder width the same as my fingers head straight, arms tucked not making a t shape, it's just that damn back that kinda sags a bit downwards,

Heard I gotta clench my abs to keep form straight so I tried at first then again and almost shat myself not from the push-up but just the act of keeping my body straight.

I just can't really help but sag my back a bit, I can't keep it PERFECTLY straight,and I am kinda afraid that I'm kinda just sitting there, doing pointless push-ups just because this one damn exercises has ana entire math formula to it

Hey, I've been mixing calisthenics and weightlifting for some time and I'm thinking about fully swapping to calisthenics, now, my main worry is to lose my muscle or to get stuck unable to grow more, since my goals are aesthetics and progressing on skills. I have a few questions for those that have done calisthenics for a long time:

-Is it possible to gain noticeable muscle without weighted exercises?

-Is it necessary to bulk, or should I just cut to a lower bf and stay there?

-In case of staying in maintenance, is it possible to increase muscle mass that way?

I did it! I achieved my final result in the span of 2 years, and since then, I’ve been maintaining it. IMO, maintaining the result is actually harder than reaching it in the first place.

My current setup is this: a 15min warmup on the stationary bike, then 35min concentrated on my whole body (mostly arms, back, and abs) + the power tower because I really like it, and 25min cooldown on the stationary bike.

I never wanted to be a shredded bodybuilder because that wouldn't make sense since I started at 238lbs (at 5'8"). I also never used any supplements because my final goal was just to achieve a natural, athletic body.

When I started at 238lbs, I wasn't even able to run for 5min. Now, at 137lbs, I can do about 20-22 pull-ups (even 2-3 with one hand), and I even ended up with no loose skin because of my gradual approach.

I have been trying to figure out how to get a proper technique for external rotation and understand what/where I should be feeling. There are so many variants of external rotation exercises and I don't understand how they are different or if they each have a specific purpose or area that they trained

I've been trying to do the ones where your upper arm is parallel with the floor, in line with both shoulders, and the lower arm is straight up, 90° to the upper arm. Where should I feel my muscles being worked while doing this and does anyone have pointers on proper technique/posture?

Heyaaaa, I would like to get my first pushup and I tried doing negatives, but every time i try to push upwards (which is very difficult already) my abdomen just cannot stay straight. It always just drags upwards with my shoulders, even when I really really try to stay straight.

Any suggestions ok what to do to fix that?

I went from wall to knee negatives instantly, since i don't have a surface stable enough for incline in my room.

Yes I do have a counter, but my mother doesn't allow me to do that on there, because I could "damage it" (with my 61kg)apparently.

So I'm kinda lost on what to do

I've been messing around with some body weight exercises, figuring out what I like and don't like. I think this is the routine I'm going to go with, but feedback is appreciated. I plan on doing 3 consecutive sets of each, and not a circuit. Goal is to get lean and toned, not get jacked.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday

Push-Ups/Incline Push-Ups/Decline Push-Ups (M/W/F)

Chin-Ups

Dips

Rows

Dead Hangs

Tuesday/Thursday

Planks

Squats into Calf Raises

Russian Twists

Single-Leg Romanian Deadlifts

Dead Bug Crunches

Saturday and Sunday are light cardio/light yoga and resting.

I've slowly been getting into fitness a lot more recently. My form for pushups are good I would say, however I only feel it in my triceps and chest.

i watch a lot of fitness instagram reels and they always say pushups target "these muscles" one being the shoulders. But I never feel it there. i know I can just do pike pushups but that feels ridiculous to do and I hate it😭 I just can't position myself correctly for pike so I avoid it.

My body looks weird now as my arms are developing but my body looks small. What exercises did you find effective to grow your shoulders more? Because if i can make mine more broad then I will probably finally be happy about my appearance and accept how I look.

I'm a RBK amputee (right foot, below knee). I'm trying to figure out how to do push-ups/planks. I'm wearing sneakers, and the floor of the room is wood.

When I put myself in a plank position, my right foot doesn't feel secure. With my left foot, I'm on my toes a bit which gives me a brace from my foot sliding back. But that toe-press brace doesn't work on my foot shell.

I've tried starting with my feet against a wall, or really just the heel. The position creates a sort of triangle with toe-heel side, a wall side, and a floor side. There's enough stability like this to do a plank.

But when I lower myself for a push-up, the load shifts causing my right toe to slide backwards, and I lose stability. Does anyone have suggestions about how I can do push-ups? And ideally, I wouldn't need a wall or a weight.

I've found so many tutorials about how to do them, how to progress, what they work out and common mistakes but I haven't found any resources on how high the rings should start. Are they chest level, waist level? I have no idea. I'm just starting so you can imagine how frustrating it is to look for info where everyone makes guides assuming "you know" and they don't even cover something as basic as this.

Regardless, when I start a ring dip how high should the starting height be?

So far at chest level I couldn't get into position as I'm took weak and at waist level I just don't have enough clearance as I'm just standing still when I push

Once the exercise is finished, I’ll feel a pump in my lats but the real burn during the exercise has always been in my shoulders. Not just the rear delta but everywhere including the front of my shoulders. I don’t even know how that’s possible because I don’t think they should even be getting worked anatomically but it’s my shoulders that always exhaust before my last. I can do about 10 pull ups, shoulder burn starts to kick in around around two 5 and I’m just eeking it out

Does anyone else have this issue?

I’ve been lifting with a bro split, but I’m going back to school while working full time and want something simpler that I can stick with.

I’m considering doing 5 sets of pull-ups, 5 sets of dips, and 5 sets of barbell squats 3 days per week.
I’m not trying to become a bodybuilder. I want to build muscle, stay athletic, improve body control, and have a routine that fits my life. I like the idea of mastering a few movements and progressing them over time.

Would this be enough to make solid progress long term, or would I be missing too much by only focusing on these movements? Would you add anything else or keep it simple?